Flynn's
by Minizaya
Summary: Restaurant AU -  Izaya works as the sommelier and Shizuo as a cook. Izaya has feelings for Shizuo for a long time now but Shizuo doesn't seem to care.
1. Chapter 1

"Izaya! Table four, c'mon!" Shinra called him through the window connecting the dining hall and the janitorial room, where a few workers where right now, taking a break or preparing something. The room was small and it had a table with a few tables on the center of it. Izaya looked up from a poker game, saying.

"Yeah, guys. Already six pm, people are coming and the game is over." Around the table were Erika, Walker and Kida, some of the waiters from the restaurant. Izaya got up and away from them. He wore a perfectly cleaned and ironed button-up white shirt, black pants and a belt. He got his apron, tying it around his waist. It was a black apron with thin white stripes that he personally loved.

He walked out on the dining hall and eyed the table. Two people; a man and a woman. He got the wine chart and walked over to the place, glancing back to Shinra. Shinra was their maître. Albeit having a playful personality outside, he was very serious on his job. Shinra nodded in affirmation and rushed towards the front door to receive their newly guests. Izaya smiled his smile, a smile of confidence and so heart-warming that everybody admired him. And he knew it.

"Good evening. I am Orihara Izaya, the sommelier from this restaurant and I'll be aiding you tonight. May I offer you the wine chart?" Izaya looked from one to another, straight in their eyes. Then he noted the most important thing when you're serving someone; who's leading the table. Decades ago, it was always the man who commanded the table; nowadays, it could be anyone. And so, the man was quiet but the woman quickly added.

"Oh, please. I would love to see the chart." And so, Izaya gave the menu for her. And waited a bit… Soon enough she would direct her word to him again. The brunet looked around. The hall was nicely decorated, like it was every day. Izaya loved working here. He liked most of the people and it was a high class restaurant and Izaya considered himself a high class person. It was better like this.

"Orihara-san?" Izaya focused his attention on his clients.

"Yes?"

"What do you suggest?" Izaya grinned and leaned closer to the woman.

"I must tell you it depends. May I ask what you have in mind for dinner today?"

The woman glanced at the man on the other side of the table, as if waiting for confirmation. He was obviously disturbed by Izaya's looked, the way he practically glared to him. Even if that made Izaya's ego go off the roof, he had to please all his clients.

"Sir?"

The man stuttered and said. "We were thinking about the Quiche Lorraine." Izaya's smile widened.

"Sure. In that case, I suggest you to get a Pinot Noir from the same region." There are three basic principles in harmonizing food and wine; by contrast, by similarity and by region. Nothing more fitting to a Quiche Lorraine than a wine from the same region.  
It would be perfect. Pinot noir is a grape slightly lighter to combine with the gruyere cheese which is a bit salty; the nutmeg over it would also increase and intensify the wine. It was perfect.

"Oh, that would be great." Izaya bowed still smiling and the man finally relaxed, smiling back to the brunet.

"Wonderful. I hope you enjoy your meal." And so, he walked away. Now, to the next part of the procedure. He got a white cloth to hold the bottle and carried it to the table, showing it to his clients by the right side.

"Excuse me… Here it is."

"Oh, wonderful." The woman smiled and he served a bit to her. Like almost everyone, she pretended to know how to taste a wine; she smelled and had a sip. "It's delicious." With that, Izaya nodded, going around the table to serve her companion first; that's the rule, to serve first the guest and later the one who ordered the wine. He filled half of his cup and then he went back to her, filling hers now.

"I hope I was of your assistance. Have a good time." And smiling, he walked away.

* * *

The restaurant was pretty full that night and Izaya was very busy himself serving everyone. It wasn't hard at all, just tiring. He didn't care; he loved his job. Finally the restaurant closed for the night. They were all on their small room, some sitting and others complaining or gossiping about someone famous or whatever who happened to be there tonight.

"KYAAA ~ Did you see her? Hijiribe Ruri was here today!" Erika was holding hands with Walker, both of them thoroughly excited while jumping around while their friend, Togusa who is the steward, which means he spends his nights cleaning up dirty dishes, was sobbing on the other corner of them room.

"That's so unfair…"

Shinra was laughing and Izaya sighed. They were all crazy in this restaurant, he included. A few moments later, their chef entered the room.

"What's going on here?" Yagiri Namie was a cold businesswoman, even if she was the cook. She had built her name all over Japan and was pretty famous. She was single, no one really knew why. Izaya did, though. She was in love with her little brother but it was not responded. And the next one who entered the room…

Heiwajima Shizuo.

Izaya's eyes shone with admiration. Shizuo was the sous-chef from the restaurant and Izaya's ex-boyfriend. They had a long story together that didn't work out in the end. Still, Izaya could feel his heart jumping at every sight of him. He was tall and had blond hair, which was now covered by his toque. Izaya smiled, forgetting all about the noise that was going on around them, taking his time to admire and absorb everything about this man. Izaya was aware that he could live every second of his day just to meet Shizuo when the restaurant closes. He was aware of how much he loved the man. He was aware that he would never forgive himself for losing him. He was aware of how much his heart ached; constantly screaming to get the hell away from him; but Izaya was also a masochist. It didn't matter how much it hurt him… He just wanted to be close to him.

And a few minutes later, everyone was exempted from their duties and Izaya was again alone, without the blond. He sighed, putting his things together and walking home. Actually, it wasn't so bad. Sometimes they would walk together, Izaya taking a larger stroll just to be with him a little longer. But not today. He guessed Shizuo wasn't in the mood for talking, such a pity.

When he got home, he took a long shower and got to bed. Izaya's schedule was the following;  
He usually woke up around ten o'clock. The restaurant only opened at night so Izaya had the day off. As a sommelier, he had a good salary but even so, he was a writer too. He tasted wines for an important culinary magazine and wrote articles about them. Izaya could never deny that he was a good and successful critic.

But that wasn't enough. Drinking wonderful wines everyday was great. Working on a five-star restaurant was cool. Having a super high class apartment in Shinjuku was nice too. But he felt something missing. Sometimes he wondered if that apartment wasn't too big for him alone. Sometimes he wished he could spend his money on someone besides himself.

With those thoughts haunting him, he fell asleep. In his dream, he saw everything happening again…

= **A few years ago…** =

"Shizu-chan!"

"Izaya. Good morning." Shizuo smiled to him. They were both younger, wearing high school uniforms. They were dating and Shizuo was his. At that time Izaya was so self-confident. It was so easy to just look and seduce Shizuo with his eyes. Damn, his first, second, third and God knows how many times, sex was with the blond. They were in love. They promised eternal love to one another.

Shizuo always liked cooking. He was even good at it. Izaya wasn't fond of cooking himself, he had other interests.

The brunet himself wasn't sure what happened. One day, Shizuo grinned to him like there was no tomorrow.

"I'm going to France, Izaya. My father is sending me there… So I can study at the Paul Bocuse Institute." Izaya's world practally fell right there. France? Fucking France? So far away. He tried to smile and to calm himself down. Yeah, he had a whole year to be with him before he went.

But time goes by too fast.

"Shizu-chan…"

"Izaya. Please… Don't look at me like that." They were at the airport, everything ready and packed to go, except Izaya, who was being left behind and heartbroken. He sobbed.

"How the hell do you expect me to look at you? Sorry if I can't fucking smile at this situation."

"Hey…" They weren't much of a public affection couple, but neither of them cared right now. Shizuo held his chin, tilting it towards his face and kissing his lips, slowly and deeply. "Listen to me. I love you. I wish you could go with me… But you can't. I'll be back for holidays in six months."

Izaya sobbed again. Great, six months. Shizuo smiled sadly and held him tightly. Izaya ignored completely Shizuo's parents and brother who were just there, standing and watching it all. After a while, a voice called all passengers to Paris, France and Shizuo squeezed Izaya. "Hey… Izaya, c'mon. Please. You'll be fine… Let me say goodbye to my family."

Even if Izaya wanted to hold him forever, he let him go. Then he hugged his family and everyone said goodbye happily. Fuck… Why was Izaya the only one depressed about that? Weren't his family going to miss him too?

Deep into his heart Izaya knew how selfish he was. He knew that this was Shizuo's dream and that his family was happy for him. But this wasn't fair. Izaya would leave any dream behind to be with Shizuo. Why couldn't him do the same? Sometime later, Izaya regretted so much that he never said 'I love you' to Shizuo on the airport. Maybe it would make all the difference.

Six months later, Shizuo came back. Still… It wasn't the same thing, at all. One day, sitting on the bench, the blond broke up with him. He cried, begged, asked but nothing changed his mind. He said that there was no way they could keep this relationship. Izaya bitterly replied that he was aware of this since the beginning. It was not a nice break up at all, for any of them.

Years later, when Izaya though he was totally over the blond, they met yet again. Shiki, the restaurant manager was an old acquaintance of Izaya. By the way, he was the one that suggested Izaya to become a sommelier. So he called Izaya to work for him. Then he found out that Shizuo was there. He was back from France and had a job as sous-chef at the restaurant.

Izaya at first thought he wouldn't care. C'mon, it was just an ex high school boyfriend. With time… He changed his mind. He learnt to care about Shizuo all over again. How come he was so addicting?

And then he learned about iher/i. Somewhere along the way, Shizuo met this Russian girl in Paris who was studying nutrition. They fell in love and dated for a few years. When he came back to Japan, he brought her with him and they shared an apartment. iCool, Shizuo./i So that girl you bring to Japan, but never thought about trying to get Izaya to go to Paris.

Izaya could practically see Shizuo and that girl having wine at the borders of Seine and kissing her all night long while Izaya was left behind, trying to calm himself down with his own fucking hand, while waiting for his boyfriend to come back.

He woke up on the next morning with his face wet by tears.

Throughout the years as Izaya started living by himself after he and Shizuo had broken up, the brunet developed a strong impression that you could buy anything with money. Everything had a price. Anyone had a price. It depended on how much. Izaya went through a lot of things and he always figured money could solve his problems. And it usually did. There were two people Izaya was certain that would never let themselves be bought by him. The first one is Shiki. When they met, Izaya tried to buy him not only with money but with his body too.

Shiki just shrugged and said. "Don't do it, kid. You're smart, shouldn't throw your life away like that." Izaya glared at him. He was aware of how smart he was and he hated when things didn't go as he planned. But with time, Izaya learned to deal with Shiki. Not through his means, though. Shiki would much rather sit, talk and be convinced by words than to let himself be bought by Izaya. Albeit Izaya was sure Shiki had some illegal dealings going on.

The other person Izaya could never buy with money was Shizuo. He never quite understood why, but Shizuo had this honesty aura all around him. He would never exchange his interests and what he believed was right for money. Ever. It made Izaya admire and hate him even more.

On Mondays the restaurant didn't open. From Tuesday to Sunday it opened at six and closed around midnight. The workers usually had to work from four pm to two am, the cooks to prepare the _mise en place;_ a term which means literally 'putting in place'. It's the first step to prepare food, where all the ingredients are organized and arranged. While the waiters had to clean the dining hall and set up the tables.  
And of course, once a month, _the bitch, _as Izaya usually referred to her came to the restaurant to have dinner. Then she would stick around until two in the morning so she could go home all lovey-dovey with_ his_ Heiwajima Shizuo.

That was the worst day of the month. Though he pretended it wasn't. Unfortunately for him, Vorona, the bitch, lived in this illusion that they were friends. Yeah, right.

"Izaya-san!" He turned around at her voice and smirked.

"Hello, Vorona. Fancy seeing you here." She giggled.

"What are you talking about, Izaya-san? I'm always here at our anniversary." She smiled like she was so fucking proud of coming here every fucking month on the same fucking day. 'The day Shizuo-kun asked me to be his girlfriend.' Fuck you, Vorona. Fuck you, Shizuo. What did the blondie have that Izaya didn't? Except for the obvious, like boobs and a freaking vagina, what else? She's so innocent and boring. Izaya was so mischievous and fun.

Izaya's eyes flared in anger and jealously. He hated it. The day he hated the most was the fifteenth. He stared at her, congratulating himself because he never let his mask fall during these horrible nights.

He hated her. Still, if he could, he wanted to be her. He wanted to be a blonde cutie that Shizuo liked. He wished to innocently go to Paris to study, then meet the most handsome guy in the world, make out with him in the most romantic city in the world and then move back to Japan and live with him.

He would give anything to be on her place. … Anything.

And it hurt so badly when Shizuo was free from kitchen duty and went to meet her. He would hold her hand and they would smile to one another. Smile like nothing else mattered in this world. Izaya knew that smile very well. Because some time ago that smile was meant for him. Still, even when everyone around him was laughing and having fun, he was just leaning against the wall feeling depressed. They were all barely noticing he was still there. Except for one person, who got away from others and asked.

"Izaya-kun, are you alright?" He clenched his fists raising his head to stare at those blue eyes that belonged to the girl he hated the most.

"Yeah, yeah… Just tired, don't worry." She nodded and smiled to him, going back to her place alongside Shizuo who barely cast a glance to Izaya.

_I hate her, I hate her, I hate her… Why can't you look at me? Why can't you look at me and see that I'm suffering because of you?_  
_Shizu-chan… Shizu-chan… I love you. So much more than she ever will. I love you. _


	2. Chapter 2

"Izaya?"

Of course, not all days were bad. Izaya would eventually get tired of getting his pride hurt if he didn't have something to look forward to. Some days, like this one, Shizuo would even call him. Izaya was holding his cards during their poker game when he came.

"Yes?"

"I'm leaving now. Wanna go with me?"

"Oh, yeah. I'll just get my stuff, wait a minute. Sorry, guys." He muttered when the other players pouted because that meant the end of their game. Izaya stood and walked over to the counter, getting his bag and putting his apron inside of it with no hurry at all. He loved making Shizuo wait for him just because he knew he would. He felt somewhat important.

"Good night, everyone." Those who were still around answered him. Shizuo walked out with Izaya following. He could only stare at that amazing broad back Shizuo had. As soon as they got out, Shizuo got a cigarette and lighted it. Sometimes Izaya wondered if Vorona didn't mind that her _boyfriend_ was slowly killing himself with those cancer sticks. Izaya hated it but was not going to lose these precious moments with Shizuo just because of it. After walking a few feet in silence, Shizuo asked.

"How was your day today?"

"Hn? Great. And yours?"

"No problem. We have to work harder since Kadota got sick, but we're managing."

"Good…" Izaya smiled sadly, looking down. Then more minutes of silence followed.

"Listen…" The brunet glanced at Shizuo who was looking forward with his eyebrows furrowed. Izaya knew he did that when he was thinking hard on what he planned to say. "Are you alright? Recently you've been looking… down." Shizuo stopped walking and stared into Izaya's surprised eyes. The sommelier wasn't expecting that.

Shizuo looked worried and Izaya felt his chest on fire at the mere thought that Shizuo, on his own way, was paying attention to him. Izaya immediately decided to take this opportunity.

"Oh…Yeah." He turned his head, looking to his side. He had to be convincing. "I'm not sure… Tch, never mind. You just asked me to be polite." Then he started walking again, grinning to himself when he felt Shizuo's fingers around his wrist, stopping him.

"Wait… No, Izaya, you can tell me." He let him go when Izaya turned to face him. Shizuo shrugged, avoiding eye contact.

"Do you want to talk?"

"I don't want to be a bother, Shizu-chan." Izaya looked down again.

"You won't." Shizuo answered bluntly and Izaya was still feeling his heart flying. They walked to a park and sat down on a bench. Shizuo got his second cigarette from the package. Izaya rolled his eyes; well, no one's perfect.

"So… What's up?" Izaya was well prepared for answering that; a random depressed drama with a bit of truth behind it for it to sound convincing.

"Well… I don't know. I'm not excited about anything anymore. Work is not gratifying. Living… neither." Shizuo sounded surprised.

"Oy, you're not thinking about suicide, right?" Izaya laughed a bit.

"No, Shizu-chan. Not suicide… But I need something to renew my life. I'll have to keep looking." Since forever, Shizuo wasn't very good at comforting people, because he never knows what words to use. But Izaya liked it… He could ramble about his problems and he knew Shizuo was genuinely interested. Then he inhaled and said.

"I'm… Not that great either." Wait? Not that great? Izaya raised his head and stared at the blond. That could be interesting and very useful information.

"What's up, Shizu-chan?"

Shizuo remained silent for a while, so Izaya insisted. "C'mon, I just told you my problems, you should tell me yours too."

Shizuo sighed and finally muttered. "I really like her. But sometimes I think there's something missing."

Izaya grinned and leaned closer. "Like what?"

Shizuo shook his head. "I dunno. I guess I'll figure it out later on." He was about to say something else when his phone interrupted him. He got it, answering.

"Hey, Vorona. Yeah… Yeah… I'm a bit late today. Don't worry, I'll be home soon. 'Kay? Wait for me." Then he stood up. "I gotta go."

Izaya sighed, getting up and looking at the blond a bit more, craving for those precious minutes they spent alone. "Alright. See you tomorrow."

"See you." And then Shizuo walked away. Izaya shrugged and went to the opposite side, kicking a small pebble on the way.

"That bitch messes everything up even when she's not around." Then, he tried to look at the bright side of this all. "Maybe Shizu-chan will realize he doesn't really like the bitch's sweet and annoying smile. Maybe he'll realize he's into men… That would be cool too."

And Izaya went home envisioning may ways of how Vorona would look like when heartbroken.

The next day, Izaya had a wine to evaluate. He got the bottle and opened it. He poured some into his cup, and then started to write down the name and other information about the wine. It was a white wine from New Zealand. He started filling out his information sheet.

**Name:** Cellar Selection Sauvignon Blanc  
**Producer:** Sileni State  
**Region/Country:** Hawke's Bay / New Zealand.  
**Harvest:** 2009  
**Alcoholic content:** 12,5%  
**Grape:** Sauvignon Blanc  
**Price:** U$33,50

All of this information he could get on the bottle, so it's the easiest part. Then Izaya went to the next step; the visual analysis of it. He tilted the bottle to one side and the other, looking intently on how the light changed colors against the light. Then he started making his notes.  
_'Light yellow, like straw. Reflects light.'_ Finally, he twisted his wrist, in a way the golden liquid inside of the cup twirled delicately. Then sniffed it; his experienced nose could easily distinguish a lot of things on that liquid. The first thing that came into his mind was… '_Fresh passion fruit._' He closed his eyes, feeling the aroma going into his nostrils, looking for secondary smells.

"Hm…" Izaya purred in appreciation, writing down. '_There's a bit of a flower scent. Mineral too… Some menthol.'_ He grinned._ 'Intense and complex scent.' _Now Izaya took his first sip. He rolled the wine against his tongue and palate, feeling all his senses focusing on that flavor alone. It was a light, acid and great wine. Izaya then took his second sip, wondering if the complexity of scents would be maintained; almost. He could still feel the passion fruit, but not the flower. Such a pity.

With his pen he made a few more notes before walking to his computer and starting to write his review on this wine. It wasn't easy to find a wine that the brunet really enjoyed. He didn't take long to review it. He gave a grade of 87 out of 100 to the wine. It really deserved it.

Albeit being in a horrible mood, tasting wines was something that really got Izaya's mind out of his problems. It was one of the few moments of peace he had during these past few years where he's working together with Shizuo. He started spinning on his swivel chair. Shizuo was probably dating Vorona for almost 5 years by now. They dated for three and a half… Damn the blonde bitch. She had one year and a half of advantage over him. Suddenly Izaya stopped his chair, smirking to the computer screen.

He would find a way to get Shizuo back. He didn't care how.


	3. Chapter 3

One day, when the waiters were cleaning the dining hall up, Shinra called Izaya.

"Izaya-kun! Shiki said he wants to see us." Izaya was taking his apron off when he came into the room.

"Oh? Well… Okay." He left the apron over his bag on the counter and followed Shinra, through some halls and then upstairs, where Shiki's office was. It wasn't much. There was a table with a computer and some files piled up on the other corner of the table. Shiki was staring at both of them who had just come in, and Izaya quickly noticed Shizuo and Namie there too. They all looked a bit lost, or surprised. Actually, looking better, Namie only looked annoyed, as usual. Izaya sometimes wondered why she kept the job if she hated it so much. Then again, he could also ask why she never thought about suicide. Izaya never, ever saw her smiling.

Then again, this was an unusual meeting. Especially because Shiki usually didn't stay until late in the restaurant.

"Good, we're all here." Shiki started. "As you know, we're at November already. I wanted to develop a special menu for Christmas. Many other restaurants are doing it and I can't let us fall behind." Izaya listened carefully, but didn't quite understand why did he was included. It's not like he knew anything about developing menus. Though he was fine while he could discreetly look at Shizuo. His blond hair all messed up by the _toque_, a drop of sweat just sliding against his skin and he raised his hand to wipe it off from his forehead. No human being could be so handsome. No human beings deserved this man. And even though Izaya loved humans, they simply didn't deserve him. He was meant for Izaya. The brunet smirked to himself, sure that the bitch would just complain and whine if Shizuo went all out on her. He knew he was the only one who could keep up with Shizuo's strength that is a bit too much out of the ordinary. Finally, he snapped his attention back to Shiki.

"I want an _entrée_, main dish and desert. And since we've got such a renowned sommelier, we should use him too. I want the three dishes with wine on them. And obviously, I trust Orihara is the best one on this country for this." Izaya stared at Shiki, having all eyes laid upon him which was great, since he was adoring all this attention. Of course, his ego went flying off the roof. But Namie quickly called back everyone's attention.

"I refuse to work with this man." And just like that, she walked away. Shinra looked surprise at this act of rebel from Namie, who was usually a serious and dedicated person.

"What? Yagiri, are you serious?" Izaya glanced at her and smirked. He guessed she still wasn't over the last prank he pulled on her. Maybe she never would. But Shiki warned.

"Yagiri Namie." She halted, not looking back. "I hope you know that I want this menu ready as fast as I can. You have to develop this menu for us."

Finally, she glanced back. "I have complete faith on my _sous_-chef. I'm sure he'll do it perfectly." Then she walked away.

Just like that, she walked away.

Shiki sighed. It's not like he didn't believe on his partner's judgment, but that cold and indifferent way of hers could be their end someday.

Shinra was stunned. He was aware that he was invited to this meeting for the sole purpose of being aware to inform others of a Christmas special.

Shizuo looked confused. He didn't mind working with Izaya, so he couldn't even wonder why she despised him so much. On the other hand, he felt confident when she said she trusted him. Not everyone have Yagiri Namie's trust.

And Izaya was flying high. First off, Shiki told him he believed Izaya was the best from the country and secondly… If he had to work with Shizuo, that meant over-hours right? There was no way they could develop and create a menu together only during work hours. That meant spending more time with him and pulling him away from that blonde bitch.

Izaya grinned a bit. He was getting the upper hand at this.

So when Izaya was heading out, Shizuo called him again.

"Izaya!" He grinned to himself. He loved the way his name rolled out of Shizuo's tongue. It was amusing to have his name spoken by such a powerful and beautiful voice. He turned around.

"Yes?" The brunet was always proud of his masks and he always pretended he didn't give a damn to others. That usually made others to try and get closer to him. Oh, humans, always so masochist. Go figure.

"Hey, about the Christmas menu… When are we going to talk about it?"

"Oh?" Izaya completely turned his body around, now. "Dunno. Do you prefer before work, I suppose?"

Shizuo nodded. "Yeah. I guess after work we would both be tired… And Vorona might not like the idea so much."

Izaya almost glared at the mention of bitch's name, but instead he smiled gently, his words full of poisonous kind words. "Oh, sure. Vorona-chan can't sleep all by herself, right?" Shizuo furrowed his brows and Izaya thought that maybe he suspected this whole act. Fortunately, Shinra, passed through them.

"Bye, Izaya-kun, Shizuo-kun! I'll see you guys tomorrow!" They both responded and waved, then Izaya said.

"Listen, Shizu-chan. How about that… Today is Friday. Give a thought about this and then on Monday we meet, since the restaurant is closed, and then we discuss our ideas. Alright?"

Shizuo considered it for a few seconds and nodded in agreement. "Fine. So see you on Monday." Now, Shizuo left and Izaya dropped his act, sighing tiredly. Forcing a smile was getting more and more demanding for him. Then, a body come up behind of him.

"Orihara." Izaya recognized the voice immediately, twisting his face to look at him.

"Shiki-san?" As mentioned before, Shiki rarely stayed until late in the restaurant. As the executive manager, he was usually the first to go. But when he did stay, he always did the same thing…

"Want a ride home?" … That was offering a car ride to Izaya. The brunet smiled sincerely this time.

"Sure." And Izaya would always, always accept it. They walked out of the restaurant, and since they were the last two to leave, Shiki made sure everything was locked up. When he wasn't there, that was Namie's responsibility. They went into Shiki's black car and Izaya left his bag on his feet, putting on the seat belt and sighing once again. He was tired and frustrated. The car started moving and Izaya concentrated on looking outside the window. He liked the way Ikebukuro was always so illuminated and full of life, just like him before meeting Shizuo again. Now he rarely felt joy. He was constantly trying to fight off the depressed feelings as the same time he craved for them. Izaya was fully aware that he would never be able to convince himself to pull away from this situation. He closed his eyes. The brunet was so weary of fighting this war. He lost most of the fights to an innocent girl who didn't even try to win. She just wins.

Then he felt fingers pushing his hair back in a gentle way. "Are you alright?" He reopened his eyes slowly and stared into Shiki's. Sometimes he wondered how Shizuo and Shiki met.

"Yeah, yeah… I'm just tired." And with that, he closed his eyes again. Shiki petted his hair for a few seconds, and then took hold of the wheel with both hands again. Izaya welcomed the short caress and smiled a bit, closing his eyes again. All too soon, Shiki braked the car.

"Here we are."

Izaya raised his head, looking at his building entrance. "Yeah… Thanks." He opened the door and got out. Shiki called him.

"Orihara."

"Hn?"

"You don't seem well. Please take care of yourself." Izaya nodded with a sad smile and walked inside. He was exhausted and didn't remember much. He dropped himself in bed and drifted off.


End file.
